It's Me
by iMe001
Summary: War has begun. The factions are divided, and Dauntless-meant to enforce peace and preserve the safety of the city-is caught between them. Tris, Tobias, and the other members of Dauntless undergo brutal training in case fighting breaks out, but there are more dangerous threats out there than any of them realize. Threats that could tear everything apart.
1. Chapter 1

Hi everyone! This is the first story I've written for Divergent; I just watched the movie (not bad for a book adaptation!) and it's been awhile since I read the books, so it's a little more influenced by the events in the film. Hopefully you all enjoy it, definitely read and review and be kind :) Thank you for checking it out!

* * *

_Tris was being dragged towards him by Eric and Max. He could feel Jeanine standing beside him, her hand rested on his shoulder as she whispered the commands in his ear, slowly and with a venomous voice. He couldn't move away, he couldn't turn and throw her to the ground; he was rooted to the spot as she told him to do the unthinkable._

_Tris grunted as Eric threw her down to her knees at Tobias's feet. Jeanine handed him the gun while Max and Eric held Tris's arms behind her back. He felt the cold weapon slip into his hand, his finger instinctively clocking the gun and then slipping to the trigger._

_"You know what to do," the venom hissed in his ear as Jeanine stepped back calmly. He blinked and placed the gun against Tris's forehead. He met her gaze; no tears, no crying or soft pleas. She just stared back at him, some unreadable expression painted across her face. Anger? Hate? Betrayal? He squinted slightly, studying her, almost wishing for some kind of emotion to appear, and yet she remained stoic and statuesque. He swallowed in the lump in his throat, took a deep breath, and just as he pulled the trigger, heard the smallest whimper from her lips._

_"Tobias."_

"NO." Tobias flew upright, eyes flying open. He was surrounded by darkness, and the room spun endlessly around him. He blinked, running a hand over his face. Sweat covered his chest as he heaved in and out, finally closing his eyes to avoid the nausea he felt from being so disoriented. The blackness didn't cease, circling him from every side, and he cradled his head between his hands, desperate for some kind of direction.

Small, pale hands appeared, lifting his face away from his own desperate fingers. He couldn't focus on the figure in front of him, but he heard soft coos and a gentle voice shushing him as those pale hands stroked his cheek, his neck. He took several deep breaths, closed his eyes.

When he opened them she was there, perched on his lap, her hands still holding his face. Tris. She was there. She was looking at him with her dark blue eyes, a look of fierce concern and protection replacing the uncaring, void gaze he had seen before.

"Tobias," she spoke softly, firmly. "Tobias. It was a dream."

He was still panting. Tris moved her hand from his cheek and ran it through his hair, scooting closer so that her legs wrapped around him, and pulled his head in to her chest. He rested against her, his arms finally wrapping around her. She was so small.

"Tris," he whispered. "Tris, I…I shot—"

"Shh…I know. I know, it's okay. It's okay. Just relax," she whispered, smoothing his hair. Tobias shivered and clutched her tighter. Everything was alright. She was here. She was safe. She was alive.

The war had begun. Jeanine and the other members of Erudite's serum program may have failed but that was only the first battle. Erudite's commitment to overthrowing Abnegation was ruthless, and thus the factions had split into two sides, each now occupying one part of the city on opposite sides. Most of Amity had sided with Abnegation, most likely because of some shared values like kindness and respect to others. Candor had pretty much dissolved into Erudite for the same reason. Dauntless was different. Dauntless didn't know what to do. A few, not many, but a few, had run off to join either Erudite or Abnegation, maybe because their families were there. Everyone else stayed put; Dauntless was meant to keep the peace, so the leaders had been arguing for weeks about how to resolve the conflict. Some leaders, like Eric, wanted to continue working with Erudite, but there were others who spoke against him. No consensus could be made, so for now, Dauntless remained neutral but cautious.

This left many Dauntless members unsure of their futures. Tris woke up everyday with the idea of running away, finding her family, and leaving with them, but it didn't take long until she could picture the Dauntless leaders pursuing her like they did the other runaways. Most of them were able to get away, but a few were caught as they left and executed. Tris was awoken by gunfire one morning, only to learn later that it was one of her fellow initiates who had tried to escape to reunite with his family in Candor, and who was executed as he tried to board the train. She was stuck in Dauntless.

On this particular morning, she was wide-awake earlier than usual, watching Tobias from the table where her breakfast lay untouched. He was sound asleep, finally. It had taken him hours after the nightmare to go back to sleep, and at first, he continued to murmur and thrash around, so much so that Tris finally conceded and crawled out from under the covers. Glancing at the clock, she saw that it was only six in the morning. She thought about going for a run, but knew that if Tobias woke up and she wasn't in the apartment, he'd worry.

She sighed and grabbed one of his sweaters from the floor before pulling it over her head. Careful not to wake him, Tris tip-toed across the floor and slipped out onto the balcony, silently sliding the door shut behind her. The sun was just rising, and she hugged herself as a chilly breeze ruffled by. This was how she spent the beginning of the day, just sitting outside and watching the sun make it's way into the sky ever so slowly, as though it too needed to stretch and yawn in order to wake up. She closed her eyes, imagining a simpler time without serums and guns and wars and factions. No violence. Was there ever such a time? Before the war, was there ever peace? Would there ever be peace again.

"Hey," she heard his low voice and stirred from her thoughts. Glancing behind her, she saw him make his way out to sit beside her, and she gave him a small smile as greeting. He didn't return it, and looked down, looking ashamed. "I'm sorry," he grunted in a small voice.

"For what?"

"I'm assuming you're out here because I was too restless," he answered, raising an eyebrow but still refusing to meet her eyes.

"Oh. It's fine," she said back, hugging her knees to her chest. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"No," he said firmly, his eyes becoming clouded. Then he sighed. "Yes. I had to shoot you. It was like when Jeanine first conducted the serum test on us, and she ordered me to kill you, but you fought back…" he trailed off, remembering. Tris closed her eyes and remembered too.

_It's me. It's me, it's okay. I love you, it's okay. It's me._

"This time you didn't fight back." He sounded so far away from her. "You just stared at me, and I couldn't read you. I wanted you to be angry, or upset. I wanted you to cry, but you just stared at up at me, like you were waiting."

"Did you pull the trigger?" she asked. He winced, ever so slightly, but it did not go unnoticed. She had opened her eyes and was watching his face now, watching him clench and unclench his jaw, blink a couple times. Finally, he looked at her.

"Yes."

She didn't know how to respond. Should she be upset that he killed her in a dream? Or should she be concerned he was dreaming about killing her at all? Biting her lip, Tris looked away from Tobias, unsure of what to say to him. The sun was awake, having climbed high enough now that the entire city was cloaked in bright light. She sniffed and ran a hand through her hair, deciding that maybe no response was the best response.

"Come on," she said quietly, standing. She offered him her hand, and he grabbed it to hoist himself up. "We should go, we'll have more training to do." Dauntless training had increased since the war broke out. New initiates and veteran members both were required to put in a daily amount of work towards weaponry, tactical skills and planning, hand to hand combat, intelligence, and other areas of warfare every day. It was bad enough having to go through the pain and exhaustion every day, but what made it worse was the uncertainty that haunted the entire faction; no one really knew what they were training for.

"Tris," Tobias said, pulling on her hand to make her stop. "I'm…I'm sorry," he said, somewhat lamely, and it was obvious he didn't know how to convey that he knew what had happened in the dream was just that, a dream, but that he still felt guilt. Tris nodded silently and walked back to him, folding herself into his arms and resting her head over his heart.

"It's okay," she said softly. "It's okay. I love you."

_"It's okay."_


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi everyone! Big thanks to everyone who has given this story a chance-it's been a fun challenge to write so I will definitely keep working on it! As always, please read and review, and I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Tris sat on the mat with a loud thump and began to unwrap her knuckles. One had split and was bleeding through the tape, but she barely felt it as she ripped off the makeshift bandage. Christina sat down beside her and took a sip of water, then closed her eyes and sighed. Tris knew how she felt; the new training regiment was brutal.

"What do you have next?" Christina panted. Tris shrugged.

"I don't even know. All I saw on my schedule this morning was combat training, so I've been doing that since morning," she answered, inspecting her hand as she opened and closed her fingers. Christina nodded and took another sip. The two sat in silence, side by side on the mat, too exhausted to talk. Christina handed over the water bottle and Tris took a long sip when she noticed a fight on another mat to her right. Tobias had Peter in a death grip headlock, and Peter was loudly grunting, trying to get his arms up high enough to swing at Tobias's face, but it was useless.

"Four is kicking his ass," Christina commented with a breathy laugh. Tris nodded and watched as Peter raised his right hand to concede, his other hand tugging at Tobias's arm. Tobias finally released him and shoved him away, wiping blood from his mouth. He walked to the edge of the mat to grab a towel and his own water bottle, taking a sip and wiping off his neck. Peter retreated to the other side, where Eric was waiting. Tris saw him bend down and listen to Eric say something to him, which must have confused Peter because he drew back and had a weird look on his face. Eric slapped the back of his head and gestured back toward the mat.

Tris could barely register what happened next. Peter went sprinting at Tobias and jumped him, tackling him off the mat and to the cement floor.

"What the fuck?" Christina exclaimed, standing up along with Tris, who's feet were automatically carrying her over to the fight. Tobias easily flipped over and grabbed Peter by the hair, punching his gut and forcing him to double over before kneeing him in the jaw. Peter dropped to the floor in a crumpled heap; Tris was pretty sure he was crying. Tobias stood up, breathing heavily and nostrils flaring as he fixed a glare on Eric.

"The hell was that about?" he asked, moving towards the blonde man. Christina bent down to check Peter's head as Tris moved past them to get closer to Tobias before something worse broke out. Eric was smirking as Tobias approached him. "What was that? The fight was over," Tobias spat, shoving Eric in the chest. Eric held up both hands and pouted.

"Come on Four, like you couldn't handle it," he retorted. Tobias shoved him again.

"I don't care, Eric. Play by the rules," he spat more blood out at Eric's feet. Eric didn't take kindly to that.

"I think you've gone soft, Four," he taunted, stepping forward. "Can't handle some punk who's barely joined Dauntless?"

Tobias stopped in his tracks and closed his eyes. He clenched his fists and took a deep breath. Tris inched closer to him, but everyone in the gym area was fixated on the conflict now and she didn't want to be too obvious.

"Come on, Four…" Eric lured, a sly smile spreading across his face. "You're showing your Abnegation side." Tris's head snapped towards Eric; so he knew that Tobias wasn't Dauntless-born, but now everyone else knew too. She could hear soft murmurs around her, and she looked back to Tobias. He had spun around and was lunging towards Eric.

Quickly, she slipped in front of him, placing a hand on his chest when he tried to push past her.

"Hey, hey!" she said to him, waiting for his eyes to focus on her instead of Eric. He huffed and continued to glare past her. "Hey, Four," she said again, placing a hand on his cheek. "Let it go."

"Yeah, Four. Let it go. Listen to your Stiff," Eric chided from behind her. She ignored it, and prayed that Tobias would do the same. He continued breathing hard, and she put her hand back on his chest, over his heart. Calm down.

Finally, he shook his head and shoved her hand away before gruffly walking past her. Tris glanced at Eric, who smirked at her, then to Christina.

"He's fine," she said, gesturing to Peter, who was sitting up and holding his head between his hands. "Thick skull," she commented, nudging him. Peter leaned away and she laughed.

"I gotta go," she said, and Christina nodded.

/

"You wanna tell me what that was about?" Tris asked, standing in front of Tobias as he sat on his bed. His jaw kept clenching and unclenching and he refused to meet her gaze.

"You shouldn't have gotten in the way," he said back, quietly. Tris rolled her eyes.

"Seriously. What is up with you and Eric," she asked again, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Nothing," he tried dodging the question again, and Tris wanted to smack him. She remained stoic, waiting for him to give up and fill her in on what his problem was. She stood there for a minute or two, not giving in. Tobias tried to match her stubbornness, but sighed and finally looked up at her.

"There's something going on with the leaders," he offered.

"Like what?"

"I don't know. Zeke told me Eric and Max left the compound yesterday in an Erudite car."

Tris sighed and unfolded her arms, pulling a chair out and sitting so she was straddling the back. She was so tired of Erudite's presence in Dauntless. The serum attack had failed, Jeanine Matthews was put on trial (and got away with it, thanks to Candor's alliance with Erudite) and Max, Eric and the other Dauntless leaders feigned innocence. The program was wiped, so if anything were brewing again between Dauntless and Erudite, it would be a different kind of attack.

"What do you think?" she asked him, but he just shrugged and looked away.

"I don't know. It's probably not good though. Erudite already tried using Dauntless bodies as soldiers, so I doubt they would try it again. But I don't know why else they would need us," he replied, fiddling with his fingernails. Tris nodded and looked down, leaning her chin on the back of the chair. Tobias looked back at up at her with tired eyes before standing up and walking to kneel in front of her.

"Thank you," he said. "For stopping me." She nodded and gave him a small smile. Tobias kissed her forehead and went to clean up the counter top. She turned and watched him, thoughts running through her mind about Erudite, about Dauntless, about her future. There were so many uncertainties in her life; she hadn't been outed as a Divergent, and neither had Tobias. Eric and Max couldn't find a way to accuse them without admitting their involvement in the entire serum attack on Abnegation, and even if they could, there was no way to prove to Candor that Tris's "tracker" wasn't just a faulty mistake. She and Tobias had commanded Jeanine to forget that they were Divergent while she was still under the influence of the serum, so she was of little concern in that department.

"What is it?" Tobias asked. "You look lost in thought." Tris shrugged and tried to smile.

"Nothing. I guess…I've just come a long way."

Tobias nodded and leaned against the counter.

"I miss my parents," Tris spilled. "I hate not knowing if they're okay, if Caleb is okay. I hate that everything is just, up in the air right now," she felt tears sting her eyes and wanted to kick herself for crying in front of Tobias.

Tobias crossed over to her in quick, long strides before he was in front of her, enveloping her in his arms. She tucked her hands against her chest and leaned on his heart, closing her eyes and imagining a world where they could do this all the time without worrying about anything else.

"Tris," Tobias said softly.

"Mmm?"

"Do you remember the first time I kissed you?" he asked, leaning away to look down at her. She recalled that evening, remembering the feel of his skin, hot under her fingers while she traced his tattoo. The way he deliberately leaned down, without hesitation, to capture her lips with his own.

"Yes," she answered quietly, meeting his gaze.

"I fell in love with you because you are brave," he kissed her hair. "You are smart," he kissed her forehead. "Kind," her temple. "Selfless," her cheek. "And honest," her nose. He cupped her face in his hands. "You embody everything I want. You are unstoppable." Tobias gently wiped away a tear that had slipped down her cheek. "And I promise you, everything will be okay," he said, his voice steady and low. Tris sighed and nodded, and before she could rest her head against his chest again, Tobias's lips swooped down in his usual determined way and pressed against hers. Instantly, she responded, moving with him and allowing his tongue to dip into the cave of her mouth to deepen the kiss, entwining her arms around his neck. She felt him sigh against her, his arms wrapping around her waist and clutching her to him tighter than ever.

They stayed like this, in this passionate embrace, until both of them were too tired to stand up any longer.


	3. Chapter 3

"Tris, Tris wake up."

Tris moaned and rolled over, trying to get away from the hand that pushed her shoulders to wake her up. It sounded like Tobias's voice, but she ignored it and tucked her knees into her chest.

"Tris, you need to get up," the voice, more urgent, and the shoves, harder, finally caused Tris to open her eyes. The lamp in the corner of the room was on and dim light glowed across the walls. Her eyes rested on Tobias's face and she found that he was dressed. His face was purposeful, like he had somewhere to be.

"Mmm?" she questioned, closing her eyes again. She didn't even want to glance at the alarm clock.

"Wake up, something's happening," Tobias said, grabbing her hand and pulling her up from the bed. Tris groaned again and slumped forward.

"What," she asked groggily, "could be so important that you literally need to yank me out of bed?"

"Erudite's here," he answered. Tris stopped mid-stretch and felt her eyes widen. "I don't know what they're doing. I woke up because I heard a truck backing up. When I looked out on the balcony I saw it moving around the corner to loading docks. We need to go."

Tris rolled out of bed, all thoughts of sleepiness forgotten as she tugged on her boots and pulled a hoodie over her head. Tobias turned the lamp off and led her to the door, quietly shutting it behind them.

The two of them crept up to the roof as quiet as possible and inched to look over the side. It wasn't too dark that she couldn't see the outline of two trucks and dark shadows moving around below. It was eerily similar to the scene Tobias had shown her before her final test, when Erudite was first bringing in the serum. They kneeled down, trying not to make noise, and Tris shivered. Tobias turned his head to look at her, his dark eyes settling on her face.

"Sorry," she muttered, hugging her arms around her chest. "I'm still waking up."

"No, you're just cold," he replied, and gently pulled her in front of him so he could lock his arms over her shoulders as they knelt down. It wasn't the most appropriate time for them to be doing this, but Tris wasn't going to complain; it was pretty chilly out.

"Thanks," she whispered, and Tobias nudged her ear in reply.

"Hey," a voice whispered, more like snapped, at them. Tris and Tobias turned instantly, silently, and found Eric kneeling ten feet away behind a storage door.

"Eric?" Tris asked. She felt Tobias tense up.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Eric asked, quietly moving over to them while staying ducked down.

"I could ask you the same thing," Tobias replied, also quiet but angrier than ever. Tris remained in front of him, and she gently put her hand on his knee to remind him to stay calm.

"I'm trying to see what Max is doing with Erudite," he answered. "I got shut out, I don't know what's going on anymore."

"Why'd you get shut out?" Tris asked, but Eric ignored her.

"Did you hear anything about what they're planning this time?" Tobias asked. Eric shook his head.

"No, and I never saw that one Erudite bitch from last time. If she's in on it, she's playing from the sidelines this time." Tris's brow furrowed; if Jeanine wasn't planning this, then who was?

Eric and Tobias moved back to the ledge to peer over, and Tris followed suit. Being so close to Eric gave her goosebumps in the worst kind of way. He knew their secret, that she and Tobias were Divergent. How could they trust him? She glanced over at his pale face, his stony eyes concentrated on the ground beneath them. He seemed to notice her stare and glanced back at her. She gulped.

"Relax, Stiff," he snarled quietly, a smirk appearing on his face. She felt Tobias stiffen again, and she turned away from Eric. "I'm not gonna blow your cover."

"How can we trust you?" Tobias asked. Eric looked at him with a mock-hurt expression and held a hand to his heart.

"Four, we went through initiation together. We were brothers."

"Yeah, before you turned into a mindless asshole," Tobias retorted, rising to the bait.

"Oh please, you gotta step on some toes to get where you wanna go," Eric replied snidely. Tobias inched forward, sandwiching Tris between them.

"Step on some toes? Are you a fucking idiot, Eric?"

"Guys, be quiet," Tris whispered, putting a hand on Tobias's chest to balance as they moved in closer towards each other, seemingly forgetting she was still there.

"You never had the balls to do what I've done," Eric taunted.

"Guys…"

"What, you shot some people and now you're a badass because you kissed Max's ass enough?"

"You're a fuckhead, Four."

"You guys!" Tris tried to keep her voice low, but the boys were getting louder.

"Don't test me, Eric," Tobias said, his voice rising.

"Oh I'm dying to test you, you Stiff-assed, fucking stupid—" Tris's hand instantly went to her boot and she pulled out the knife she kept inside and raised it to Eric's throat while shoving Tobias away.

"I will literally cut your neck open and shut you up myself if I have to," she threatened. Eric's eyes held the ghost of another smirk and snarky comment, but he held up his hands and stayed quiet. "Now both of you shut up," she continued, turning to look at Tobias. He just glared at her for not siding with him.

She didn't bother returning the knife to her boot, but instead twirled it between her fingers. She didn't miss the glances Eric kept giving her and her hands, and inside, she smirked herself.

The sun had just peeked over the horizon, and a dim, pale light began to illuminate the scene below them. All Tris could see were the trucks, as though the people had gone inside. She was about to ask Tobias if he saw them go inside when one figure appeared by the truck, holding a gun and obviously keeping guard. Tris squinted as another figure came jogging out, then four or five more. The guard, a woman, walked to meet one of them, a man. Tris leaned forward and tried to get a better visual. They looked so familiar…

"Oh my God," she stuttered and actually fell backward off her haunches. Tobias grabbed her arm instinctively, and Eric double checked to make sure no had heard her.

"What the hell?" he whispered. Tobias put his hands on her shoulders.

"What is it?" he asked her, and Tris blinked several times, ran a hand through her hair and took a few deep breaths before she could answer.

"It's…it's my parents."

/

"Any sign of her?" Natalie asked as Andrew, Marcus and the others came jogging back outside. Andrew sighed and shook his head. "What?" Natalie asked, her heart breaking for the daughter's life she feared. "Where could she be?!"

"I don't know, Natalie, I don't know but we need to go, now." Andrew placed his gun back in the holster and motioned for the others to load in. More of them emerged from various doorways, silent as ever, quickly moving towards the trucks. Natalie was running a hand over her face, staring at her former home with despair. Somewhere inside, her daughter was asleep and in danger. Max didn't care how many children were in those walls; the attack would happen regardless.

"Andrew," she murmured, at a loss for words. Her husband's eyes reflected her concern and he drew her in close to him, close enough to whisper in her ear: "We'll find her before tomorrow, Natalie," and with a swift kiss to her cheek, he pulled her up into the truck.

As they pulled away from Dauntless, Max emerged in the doorway to reset the passcodes. Before he shut the back door of the truck, he saluted Max, who returned the gesture with a small nod. The door shut, and they were confined to the darkness of the truck and the worry for their daughter.

* * *

**Ooooohhhh dramaaaaa….hopefully you guys liked this chapter! Lots of swear words, I know, I'm sorry, but I have the mouth of a sailor and I feel like Dauntless would too. SORRY PLEASE DON'T BE OFFENDED. Please DO submit a review and let me know what you think! xoxoxo**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hi everyone! This chapter is a bit longer, just a heads up! I'm trying to update as frequently as possible, but alas, academics like to interfere with my life. Thanks for reading and make sure to follow and drop a review if you're so inclined! xoxoxo**

/

Tris's knuckles never again felt the sting from the Dauntless punching bags the way they did during initiation. Now, there was just a numb pressure that spread through her hands whenever she trained with them, punching and smacking at the leather. This morning her mind was far away from the gym, lost somewhere in the city between Erudite HQ and her old, gray house.

"Tris!" Uriah calls, and at first she doesn't hear him, but soon he is jogging up to her and she wipes the sweat from her brow and turns to him, a thin smile on her face.

"Hey," she says, a little breathlessly. Uriah nods in greeting and steadies her bag, which is still swinging from her last punch.

"Have you seen Four?" he asks. Tris shook her head.

"No, why? What do you need?"

Uriah shook his head and shrugged, answering that he was just curious. Tris raised an eyebrow at him, crossing her arms. Uriah copied her stance with a small smirk tugging at the corner of his lip, baiting her. She didn't bite, and waited.

"Alright, alright. Zeke's looking for him and Eric, dunno why," he answered, holding up his hands when Tris opened her mouth to question him. "Like I said, dunno why. Zeke just asked me to check with you since you're like, his handler."

"I'm not his handler," she replied, moving back towards the bag to resume her combat training. "Just the girlfriend." Uriah rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, right," he shrugged again and began walking away from her backwards so she could still see the teasing smile on his face until finally, he turned away from her and strolled out the gym.

Tris shook her head and assumed her stance to begin punching again. She wondered if Zeke knew about the group of people that were at the compound last week. She and Tobias had continued to check on the roof, but no one had returned who wasn't from Dauntless. Sometimes they ran into Eric patrolling too, and although this created an uneasy alliance between them, she still felt her skin prickle when his stony eyes fell on her. Like they did now.

"Oh," she jumped a little as he appeared behind her. "Didn't see you there. Uriah said that—"

"Yeah, Zeke's looking for me. I got it." He was circling her, slowly, watching her as though she was still an initiate, examining her form. She tried to ignore him, tried to focus on her training.

"Do you need something?" she asked him finally, stopping and putting her hands on her hips, panting slightly. Eric quirked an eyebrow and motioned towards the exit with a quick jerk of his neck. He walked away without seeing if she followed, which she did, looking around to see if anyone watched them as he led down a small hallway to the side of the gym's exit.

"What?" she demanded, and a second later, Eric had her by the throat. He wasn't trying to strangle her, but he wasn't being gentle either. She clawed at his hand uselessly.

"E-Eric…wha—"

"Shut up, Stiff. Now, listen closely," he flashed the knife he kept in his pocket as a warning: don't scream. "I know you think we're on the same side here, but let me make it very clear to you that we are not." Tris continued to paw at his hand. He gripped her neck tighter.

"I know that you're Divergent. I know Four is too. I need him in order to get back in with Max, and you're going to help me." Suddenly, he let her go, but before she could skirt past him, he grabbed her shoulders and slammed her up against the rock behind her. Tears stung her eyes, but not from pain. He was leaning close to her now, snarling. She couldn't lean away far enough, restricted by the wall, but could feel his breath on her neck.

"You're that initiate with a fear of, what was it, intimacy?" He inhaled slowly, and she felt her stomach plummet to her feet. "What an insanely irrational fear to have," Eric continued, speaking low. "It's like you're afraid that someone might…violate you." Tris almost whimpered when he whispered that so close to her ear. His hand was suddenly moving down her throat, her collarbone, hovering over chest. His other hand forced her eyes to his own.

"You get Four to accept a Leadership position. Max is always waiting for him to ask, so it shouldn't be a problem." He gripped her jaw, hard.

"Why?" Tris managed to choke out staring at him through the moisture in her eyes.

"Max wants Four on his side. He thinks Four, as a Divergent, could be useful. He told me to recruit him."

"But…why?" Tris asked again. Eric tilted his head and narrowed his eyes.

"That's need-to-know information," he replied coldly, finally moving his hand to her chest and stroking down her side, leaning into her. Tris couldn't help it, a small whimper escaped her lips and she moved her head away.

"If you tell him any of this, I swear to God, Stiff, I will make sure you remember what my definition of 'intimacy' is," he hissed. "And I can guarantee you that it will hurt." He stepped back, but kept a firm hand on her elbow. "Do we have a deal?"

"What will happen once I'm done?" she asked, raising her chin. Her cheeks were blazing and her skin felt like it was soaking wet and desperate to tear away from her bones. She felt naked, though she was still entirely clothed. Eric looked at her with an amused and deadly expression in his eyes, before giving her a small shrug.

"We'll see." With that, he gave her one last glare before strutting off. Tris waited until he was out of sight before collapsing and hugging her knees to her chest, trying to catch her breath. Oh God. Oh God.

/

Tris skipped dinner and was already lying in bed by the time Tobias walked through the door. Her back was to him, but she heard him enter. She debated feigning sleep, but knew he would want to talk about her absence that evening. She waited for him to initiate conversation without turning towards him; she could hear him unzipping his jacket and grabbing a glass of water. She heard the metallic 'tink' as his belt came off, followed by his pants, before he grabbed a pair of shorts and walked into the bathroom to brush his teeth.

It was a short ritual, but it felt like it took him an hour to get into bed. Instinctively, he wove his arms around her waist and pulled her towards him, silently asking her to turn. She blinked and tried to put on her usual small smile before facing him.

"Hi," she said quietly, holding a hand tentatively to his face. He didn't respond, and just looked at her kindly. "How are you?"

"Fine," he answered, short. "Where were you?"

"I just came back here, I didn't feel so good after combat training, thought I would get some rest." Her answer wasn't a total lie. In fact, she had felt insanely sick after training, but it wasn't because of her stomach. Tobias's brow furrowed but he didn't push. She nestled closer, hoping to distract him. It worked, and he started kissing her temple. She sighed, content, and closed her eyes as his lips worked down her cheek, her jaw, her collarbone. Tris let out a small, breathy moan as he shifted again to kiss her lips hungrily. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he moved on top of her. One of his hands rested warmly on her side while the other brushed the hair from her face. He pulled away to smile at her, and Tris froze.

Stony eyes. Piercings. Greasy hair. Eric's face appeared in front of her, his sick smile making his piercings stretch, the sadistic look in his eyes boring into her until Tobias's face disintegrated completely. Her stomach dropped and before she could stop herself, her eyes widened and she scrambled out from under Tobias, nearly pushing him off her.

"Tris?" he asked, his voice sounding unusually small as she swiftly moved to the edge of the bed, swinging her legs over she was sitting. She took a deep breath and lowered her head to rest in her hands. _Calm down. Breathe. It's Tobias. Not Eric. It's not Eric._

"Tris," he had gotten up and moved to kneel in front of her. "What is it? What did I do?" There was a slight edge to his voice, and she knew he was thinking this was her fear of intimacy playing up again. She wanted to correct him, to show him that it wasn't his fault.

"I'm fine," she whispered and began to sit up, away from him, but his hand grabbed her chin. His touch wasn't rough, but she knew she couldn't pull away this time.

"Don't lie to me, Tris," he said in a low voice. She stared at his hard eyes for a few seconds, keeping her lips shut. He gazed back, even as she raised her hand to touch his cheek.

"You take such good care of me," she whispered to him, her eyes welling up. "And I can't repay you. I can't save you the way you've saved me so many times." Tobias looked at her, confused. His free hand drifted up and covered her fingers on his face.

"Tris…what are you talking about?" She silenced him with a kiss, long and slow, moving her lips against his and ignoring Eric's voice hissing quietly in her head, warning her. She was so scared, so scared that he would follow through. She knew he would. There was nothing stopping him from taking her, forcing her to bend over or whatever it is he would do to her, tearing into the most sacred parts of herself and staining her. She was so scared, but Dauntless taught her to be brave, and Abnegation taught her to be selfless. Tobias taught her they could be one in the same, and in this case, she knew it was true. She couldn't let Eric tear her and Tobias apart, and she couldn't be blackmailed into lying to the man she loved.

"Listen to me," she said softly, pulling him back onto the bed. She guided him so he was sitting against the wall, on top of their pillows; his legs spread out in front him, while she sat in his lap, his arms loosely around her waist.

"What I'm about to tell you is going to upset you, but you have to let me finish before you run off to murder him."

"Murder who?" Tobias's eyes turned harder, anger seeping into his face. Tris took a deep breath.

"Eric came to see me during combat training. He wants back in with Max. Max apparently still wants you for Leadership, and he's tasked Eric with recruiting you."

"But they know I'm Di-"

"Yeah, and Max wants to use it to his advantage. Eric wanted me to convince you to join Leadership so he could get back in Max's good graces, get back involved in whatever he's planning." Tobias kept looking at her, his eyebrows pulled together.

"That's all?" he asked her, and Tris took another deep breath. She put her hands on his chest, and hoped he didn't realize it was a precaution in case she needed to restrain him from charging out the door.

"He threatened me, blackmailed me into lying to you and convincing you to join." Tobias's eyes lit up with a fiery hatred. He gritted his teeth and hissed: "How?"

"He said he'd rape me if I didn't get you to join or if I told you."

Just as she guessed, Tobias lunged forward, but her hands pushed him back to the wall. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back, breathing heavily. She waited, moving closer to him. He didn't look at her for a long time, keeping his eyes closed. He took a few deep breaths to calm down, and under her palm, she could feel his heart rate slow.

"Tobias," she whispered. He opened his eyes, his head snapped forward, and suddenly he was lunging forward again, only this time, his arms clasped around her, crushing her to his chest as his lips descended upon hers. This kiss was hard and demanding, but Tris had learned to keep up with him now. She moved so she was straddling him, wrapping her legs around him and pulling him closer. Her lips parted and the kiss deepened as a guttural noise escaped Tobias's throat. Her hands moved to hold his face as they pressed against one another.

When he pulled away, his face was flushed, and his eyes were lively. Tris could only guess she looked the same, and she leaned her forehead against his. He laced his fingers in her hair, and even though both their eyes were closed, she heard his next words loud and clear.

"The next time anyone threatens to touch you, you tell me, especially Eric," he said, and his voice was so full of danger and boiling anger that even Tris felt her skin get goosebumps. "I will kill him, Tris. I swear, if he ever lays a finger on you, I will destroy him."

Tris couldn't respond; she knew her voice would shake from the love and protection radiating from his body. Instead she wrapped herself around him and nestled her face into his neck, kissing his skin.

_I love you._


	5. Chapter 5

**Hi everyone! I'm so sorry this has taken so long to come out; like I said, academics are little hogging all my time, and with so much homework to do I've had a serious case of writer's block galore! Hopefully you like this chapter. It's kind of a behind-the-scenes look at what's going on beyond the Dauntless compound. As usual, thanks so much for reading and feel free to drop a review if you feel so inclined! xoxo**

**/**

Tobias waited four days until he went to see Max about the Leadership proposition. Max didn't ask many questions; probably didn't want to give Four a chance to change his mind, but he did ask what convinced him to join. Tobias shrugged and said it was Tris's idea, that he was cut out for it and why not give it a shot. Max nodded and accepted the answer without any suspicion, too pleased that he finally had a Divergent on his side. The others needed to be alerted immediately, but he decided to tell Marcus first, not Natalie and Andrew. Tris's future was still up in the air, and he didn't want their judgment clouded now.

He didn't know what to do with the Prior girl. He didn't care for her much, not after the attack on Abnegation. She was smart enough to know that if she exposed him as a leader of the assault, no one would believe her, and they'd know she was Divergent; he was smart enough to know that if he told anyone she was Divergent, they'd know he too had been awake and lucid during. It created an unwanted alliance between the two; unwanted, but perhaps useful. Max paced across the floor of his apartment, pondering what purpose she could possibly serve, when there was a knock on the door. From the impatient sound of the pounding, he knew it was Eric.

"Come in, " he answered lazily, and just as he suspected, Eric barged in, slamming the door behind him.

"You got what you wanted," Eric snarled, crossing his arms across his chest. "Now let me back in." Max looked at him, still pacing, with a raised brow. Eric looked pissed, but then again, he always looked pissed. Max didn't really care for Eric much anymore either. This new plan, the one he was developing with Natalie, Andrew, Marcus and the others, wasn't nearly as sadistic as the Erudite plot, but it was still messy. Eric was too murderous to be trusted with all the facts.

"Fine," Max answered finally, turning on his heel to look at his protégé. "Yes, we are looking into another attack." Eric's eyes lit up. "However, we are not partnering with Erudite again. They threw us under the bus last time, and I haven't quite forgiven them." Max began pacing again, and Eric watched with eager eyes.

"What does this plan entail?" the younger man asked.

"Sabotage, but that's all I'll say for now. We have another meeting in three days, and your presence, along with Four's, is requested." Eric's lip curled at the mention of Four, and Max almost laughed at the man's fascination with besting Tobias Eaton.

"Fine. When and where?" Eric ground out the words.

"Zeke will pass along the message when the details are sorted." Max answered. "You can go." He didn't give Eric a choice.

With Eric gone, Max continued strolling around the apartment, a plan forming in his head for young Tris. He had seen Eric's assault four days ago outside the gym; the ever-reckless leader must not have noticed that Dauntless had installed cameras almost everywhere on the compound, and his little blackmailing threat was caught on tape. Max pitied the girl when he watched the footage, but admired that Eric's plan worked. He always knew Four wouldn't come to Leadership simply because he was "curious", so obviously the girl and her wellbeing had immense influence over him. Max couldn't help but relish the thought of having Four, follow every command he issued, just by putting a gun to Tris's head. With a small smile, Max stopped moving and sat down with a satisfied thump on his chair, slinging his arm over the back and taking a drink of his flask. The possibilities were truly endless. Picking up the phone, he dialed the number quickly, and the phone only rang once before a male voice answered.

"It's me," Max said. "We've got him. Move onto the next stage."

/

Jeanine leaned against the wall of her cell as Natalie walked in and sat in the visitor's chair. Neither woman spoke for awhile; Jeanine picked at her fingernails and Natalie seemed to be gazing off into space, unfocused on the criminal in front of her. Jeanine was irritated by Natalie's silence; she hated how Abnegation always let others speak their mind first. What a dumb concept.

"Are you here to gloat?" she asked. Natalie slowly refocused on her, and even if it didn't spread to her lips, a smile appeared in the crinkle of her eyes. She leaned back against the chair and folded her hands in her lap.

"No, Jeanine," she answered evenly. "Are you cold?"

"No."

"Hungry? I could request your dinner be brought down early."

"No, " Jeanine answered again, with another irritated sigh. "No, I am not hungry or cold or miserable. I do not need you to do anything for me except speed up my sentence." Natalie frowned.

"You know I can't do that, Jeanine. You were sentenced to life imprisonment following our testing." Jeanine rolled her eyes.

"Obviously, I am aware." She was so not in the mood for this. She was taken prisoner almost immediately after the failed serum attack by Andrew, Natalie, and Marcus. Along with some of her colleagues, she was tried by a few traitor Candor and found guilty of whatever charge she was tried for, she didn't really remember. She didn't pay attention much to the trial, only getting away from everyone. Anyone who wasn't in Erudite seemed to irritate her nowadays, because every day she became more and more aware of how unintelligent a world she was trapped in.

"So, when does testing start?" she asked, hoping to move along the conversation and get Natalie out of here. Natalie cocked her head and looked at Jeanine with a curious glance.

"They haven't told you?" she asked. Jeanine raised an eyebrow.

"I'm a prisoner. They don't tell me anything." Natalie nodded and scooted the chair a little closer to the bars.

"Well, the serum program used on the Dauntless soldiers was wiped out, as you know," she began. Jeanine resisted the urge to tune out now; this woman wrote the book on being boring. "And we're thinking that if we can restore the formula, we'll be able to come together and find a way to reestablish our society in peace."

"You can't restore the formula," Jeanine answered, tiredly. "No one from Erudite is allowed to leave headquarters, and none of them would join Abnegation in this war."

"You seem to forget my son was an Erudite. He came home to us," Natalie answered, proud. Jeanine again rolled her eyes.

"Your son didn't belong in Erudite, Natalie. He had a blind curiosity but no thirst for knowledge. And even if he had," she said, turning to face the other woman. "It wouldn't have gotten him anywhere. All theory and no conviction, that boy is. He's not capable of action."

"I'd like to think you're wrong, but of course, we will all soon find out." Natalie smoothed out her ugly gray dress as she responded. Jeanine hated her kind voice, her calm demeanor. It was like accidental mockery on her part, for Abnegation would never openly mock anyone, but Jeanine knew Natalie must suspect her tone would cause the blonde woman some anxiety.

"Is that all you wanted to discuss? If you don't mind, I'd like to get back to sitting by myself."

"No," Natalie answered. "Actually, it's not. As you are probably aware, Dauntless has been unreachable by all factions due to their internal schism. They can't decide who to side with, and Dauntless will never split down the middle." Finally, Natalie stood from her chair and knelt by the bars to be closer to Jeanine. "I'm very sorry, Jeanine, for what we're about to do to you," she said, a sad look in her eyes. Jeanine looked back, incredulous.

"You won't kill me," she said quietly, her voice full of assurance. Natalie shook her head.

"No, we won't…but I fear this might be worse." For a second, Natalie considered slipping a hand through the bars to rest on Jeanine's shoulder, but decided not to. "Just know, what we do, we do for the greater good."

With one last sad smile, Jeanine stood. Smoothing out her dress again, she walked away from Jeanine, who watched her with narrowed eyes. Natalie looked back again as she opened the door to the holding room before exiting. The door had barely shut when another figure strolled in: Andrew. Jeanine's eyes widened and she immediately looked away from the man she once called her friend.

"Good evening, Jeanine," he said quietly, walking over to the small countertop in the room and opening a kit. Jeanine heard a metallic clink but refused to acknowledge him. "I'm going to inject you with a serum," he said. "I'm not going to tell you what it does, because I don't want you to be afraid."

Jeanine, much to her chagrin, felt tears sting her eyes. She gritted her teeth and moved her neck so she was staring straight ahead. Andrew had prepared the needle and was leaning down beside her. She sat very still, pretending he wasn't there.

"Just a small pinch," he guided her along his process and she felt a prick at her neck, but she barely winced. She refused to show weakness in front of him. "Thank you," he told her, standing up. Jeanine wanted to ask how long it would take to kick in, but she felt the effects almost immediately. Her vision began to face, black dots appearing at the corner of her eyes and increasing in number until she could barely make anyone out.

"W-wait…" she whispered, beginning to kneel over. Who among her colleagues had they coerced into making this? Who was the traitor among her friends? "Who…who made this…this serum…?" she croaked, sliding down to feel the cool ground on her cheek. When Andrew answered, he must have been leaning again, right beside her face.

"I did."


End file.
